Furthermore, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment has started a campaign to encourage governments to adopt a national active transportation strategy, which was one of the main recommendations in a reported released by the Canadian Public Health Association-Lancet Countdown Briefing for Canadian Policymakers.

Ian Culbert, executive director at the Canadian Public Health Association, said the lack of research on the health impacts of different edibles is one of the greatest regulatory challenges. “As opposed to alcohol, we have insufficient quality data around dosage of cannabis-infused [edible] products. How to define a serving size for the range of potential products will be a challenge,” Culbert said. “There is significant pressure on regulators from the industry players who are staking millions of dollars on this new industry.”

Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver have now united in their call for Ottawa to decriminalize all hard drugs. They join a growing chorus of activists and health agencies, including the Canadian Public Health Association.

The Simcoe Muskoka District Board of Health recently endorsed recommendations by the Canadian Public Health Association to decriminalize possession of small quantities of illegal psychoactive substances — a category that includes opioids and hallucinogens.

The Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA) is calling on municipalities to pressure the federal government to decriminalize the possession of any illicit drug for personal use — but Windsor's mayor isn't open to the idea. The organization is based in Ottawa and it advocates for health policy reforms. Its executive director, Ian Culbert, said treating drug addicts like criminals hasn't deterred drug abuse, but rather it has made it worse.

As Dr. Marlene Spruyt, Algoma’s medical officer of health, told The Sault Star, such a position has been shared by the Canadian Public Health Association and Centre for Addiction and Mental Health for some time.

CPHA executive director Ian Culbert said in a release there is evidence being arrested and put in jail does not deter people from using illegal drugs.
"Before more lives are lost to drug use, the federal government should migrate to a public health approach to manage all psychoactive substances," Culbert said.

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